System and method for implementing dynamic suppression and recreation of suppressed data in a communications environment

ABSTRACT

A method for communicating data is provided that includes receiving a plurality of bits associated with a communications flow and determining whether one or more samples included in the flow should be suppressed. The method also includes suppressing a selected one or more of the samples if the selected samples are similar to previously received samples. In a more particular embodiment, the method also includes positioning unique samples that are included in the flow in a super-frame to be communicated to a next destination. Additionally, the method may include receiving the unique samples and evaluating the unique samples in order to restore a plurality of bits associated with the communications flow.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to the field of communicationsand, more particularly, to a system and a method for implementingdynamic suppression in and recreation of suppressed data acommunications environment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Communication systems and architectures have become increasinglyimportant in today's society. One aspect of communications relates tomaximizing bandwidth and minimizing delays associated with data andinformation exchanges. Many architectures for effectuating proper dataexchanges can add significant overhead and cost in order to accommodatea large number of end-users or data streams. For example, a large numberof T1/E1 lines may be implemented to accommodate heavy traffic, but suchlines are generally expensive and, thus, usage of each one should bemaximized (to the extent that it is possible) in order to achieve asystem benefit per-unit of cost.

Compression techniques can be used by network operators to produce highpercentages of bandwidth savings. In certain scenarios, networkoperators may consider compressing common communication patterns thatappear on a given communication link. However, many of the existingcompression/suppression protocols are deficient because they are static,unresponsive, and rigid. Moreover, many such systems add overhead to thesystem, while not yielding a sufficient offsetting bandwidth gain.Accordingly, the ability to provide a communications system thatconsumes few resources, optimizes bandwidth, and achieves minimal delaypresents a significant challenge for network operators, serviceproviders, and system administrators.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

From the foregoing, it may be appreciated by those skilled in the artthat a need has arisen for an improved suppression approach thatoptimizes data exchanges in a communications environment. In accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention, a system and a method forproviding protocols for dynamically suppressing data are provided thatsubstantially eliminate or greatly reduce disadvantages and problemsassociated with conventional compression/suppression techniques.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a method forcommunicating data is provided that includes receiving a plurality ofbits associated with a communications flow and determining whether oneor more samples included in the flow should be suppressed. The methodalso includes suppressing a selected one or more of the samples if theselected samples are similar to previously received samples. In a moreparticular embodiment, the method also includes positioning uniquesamples that are included in the flow in a super-frame to becommunicated to a next destination. Additionally, the method may includereceiving the unique samples and evaluating the unique samples in orderto restore a plurality of bits associated with the communications flow.

Certain embodiments of the present invention may provide a number oftechnical advantages. For example, according to one embodiment of thepresent invention, a communications approach is provided that enhancesbandwidth parameters for a given architecture. This is a result of thesuppression scheme, which yields bandwidth gains by recognizingrepetitious patterns. A given input bit stream may be identified as acandidate for suppression. Subsequently, the bit pattern is nottransmitted over the backhaul, whereby the suppressed data can be simplyplayed out or restored on the other end of the link.

Furthermore, the bandwidth savings can be produced without any increasein the complexity of multiplexing and demultiplexing schemes.Additionally, such an upgrade or enhancement may be provided to anexisting system with minimal effort. A simple algorithm may be used toleverage infrastructure already in place. Thus, a complete systemoverhaul is not necessary. Such advantages may be particularlybeneficial to service providers, as effective compression protocolssignificantly reduce their operating expenditures.

Note also that such an enhancement is flexible in that it can beextended to include a multitude of compressible, common, repetitivepatterns. Thus, such a solution can be easily extended to signaling andpacket data channels. This further allows such a configuration toaccommodate a wide range of incoming flows, as it may be extended to anumber of different types of traffic arrangements. Additionally, minimaloverhead is incurred as a result of the operations of the presentinvention.

Certain embodiments of the present invention may enjoy some, all, ornone of these advantages. Other technical advantages may be readilyapparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures,description, and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention and theadvantages thereof, reference is made to the following description takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like referencenumerals represent like parts, in which:

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a communication system fordynamically suppressing data in a network environment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example internal structure associatedwith either a cell site element or an aggregation node of thecommunication system;

FIG. 3 is a simplified schematic diagram of an example GSM 8.60 format;and

FIG. 4 is a simplified schematic diagram of an example associated withthe communication system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a communication system 10 forsuppressing data in a communications environment. Communication system10 may include a plurality of cell sites 12, a plurality of mobilestations 13, a central office site 14, a plurality of base transceiverstations 16, a plurality of cell site elements 18, and a networkmanagement system 20. Additionally, communication system 10 may includean aggregation node 22, a plurality of base station controllers 24, amobile switching center 25, a public switched telephone network (PSTN)27, and an Internet protocol (IP) network 29. Note the communicationslinks extending between cell site element 18 and aggregation node 22, ascompared to the number of communication links extending between cellsite element 18 and base transceiver stations 16. This arrangement hasbeen provided in order to illustrate that without the present invention,the number of communication links between cell site 12 and centraloffice site 14 would be equal to the output of base transceiver stations16. By implementing the suppression techniques of the present invention(and as explained in detail below), a reduction in communication linksbetween cell site 12 and central office site 14 is achieved.

Communication system 10 may generally be configured or arranged torepresent 2.5G architecture applicable to a Global System for Mobile(GSM) environment in accordance with a particular embodiment of thepresent invention. However, the 2.5G architecture is offered forpurposes of example only and may alternatively be substituted with anysuitable networking system or arrangement that provides a communicativeplatform for communication system 10. For example, the present inventionmay be used in conjunction with data communications, such as those thatrelate to packet data transmissions. Additionally, communication system10 may be provided in a 3G network, where 3G equivalent networkingequipment is provided in the architecture. Communication system 10 isversatile in that it may be used in a host of communicationsenvironments such as in conjunction with any time division multipleaccess (TDMA) element or protocol for example, whereby signals fromend-users, subscriber units, or mobile stations 13 may be multiplexedover the time domain.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, in a GSM network, a backhaul network existsbetween a BTS and a BSC. The backhaul can be used to transmit voiceconversations, data, and control information using various standards andproprietary vendor specific formats. In order to address operationalexpenses, a backhaul optimization scheme is desired that will providesignificant bandwidth savings, while maintaining low latency andend-to-end transmissions for all possible frame types.

In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, communicationsystem 10 operates to suppress unused, idle, and redundant informationin offering an optimal solution for the backhaul network. This can beachieved by dynamically detecting and suppressing repeating bit patternsembedded in subsequent 8 Kbps sub-rate frames and then recreating thesuppressed data at the far end of the communications link. Theseoperations can be performed regardless of the frame format and thesub-rate width being employed at any given time. Thus, an incoming bitpattern may be evaluated to determine whether it can be suppressed. Abit pattern can be played out or restored on the opposite end of thecommunication link to mimic the data in cases where the frame isdesignated for suppression. The restoration function includes suitableordering and timing operations. This recognition (of prevalent repeatingstreams) would allow the greatest savings for any compression operation.In cases where the incoming pattern is not a candidate for suppression(i.e. not repetitious), the entire bit pattern could then be sent, asthe architecture would be unable to suppress all of the diverse bitpatterns in a given backhaul with fewer bits. A demultiplexer, which ispositioned downstream, may then simply perform a series of reverseoperations in identifying the suppressed information and playing out thedata.

Preprocessing of the input bits can be done such that the samples beingconsidered for suppression are not necessarily consecutive bits from theinput stream, but can be selected such that they are most likely to besuppressable. Hence, the present invention provides for the reorderingof input bits, the selection of samples from the reordered bit stream,and the restoration of proper bit ordering.

Using such a protocol, communication system 10 provides a simplisticsolution for reducing compression and decompression operations. Inaddition to creating minimal overhead and being easy to implement (withpotential modifications only being made to aggregation node 22 and cellsite element 18), such an approach could cooperate with any suitablecompression protocol or arrangement. The enhancement in transmission canbe provided in both aggregation node 22 and cell site element 18, as thepresent invention bi-directional.

Note that for purposes of teaching and discussion, it is useful toprovide some overview as to the way in which the following inventionoperates. The following foundational information may be viewed as abasis from which the present invention may be properly explained. Suchinformation is offered earnestly for purposes of explanation only and,accordingly, should not be construed in any way to limit the broad scopeof the present invention and its potential applications.

It can be appreciated that circuit switched data is generally present onthe backhaul and the challenge is to convert that into packet switcheddata such that additional IP traffic can be added to this data. Thiscould maximize the bandwidth available on the backhaul. From anotherperspective, the bandwidth required to support the circuit switched datashould be reduced where possible.

A number of time slots (e.g. within a T1/E1) are often idle or unused.Other patterns may include repetitive voice data, silence data, userdata, or control data. Recognizing this inefficiency allows some of thisidleness to be eliminated, as the only information that should bepropagating along the backhaul is information that is unique (i.e.cannot be recreated at aggregation node 22). Other insignificant datasegments (e.g. silence, certain control information, etc.) can similarlybe accounted for and eliminated from the traffic flows to produce anincrease in available bandwidth. The following are candidates forsuppression (i.e. not transmitted over a given IP E1 from BTS site toBSC site): 1) idle/unallocated time slots; 2) idle TRAU; 3) silenceTRAU; 4) error sub-rate/channel; 5) HDLC idle (repeating 7E flags); and6) GPRS idle/repeating PCU/CCU.

Hence, by removing much of the overhead, a new frame (or super-frame)can be built that is much smaller. The new frame can be packetized andthen sent across the backhaul. This would achieve a reduction inbandwidth required to communicate information from one location toanother and/or reduce the number of E1/T1 lines between base transceiverstation 16 and base station controller 24.

Mobile station 13 may be used to initiate a communication session thatmay benefit from such a suppression protocol. Mobile station 13 may bean entity, such as a client, subscriber, end-user, or customer thatseeks to initiate a data flow or exchange in communication system 10 viaany suitable network. Mobile station 13 may operate to use any suitabledevice for communications in communication system 10. Mobile station 13may further represent a communications interface for an end-user ofcommunication system 10. Mobile station 13 may be a cellular or otherwireless telephone, an electronic notebook, a computer, a personaldigital assistant (PDA), or any other device, component, or objectcapable of initiating a data exchange facilitated by communicationsystem 10. Mobile station 13 may also be inclusive of any suitableinterface to the human user or to a computer, such as a display,microphone, keyboard, or other terminal equipment (such as for examplean interface to a personal computer or to a facsimile machine in caseswhere mobile station 13 is used as a modem). Mobile station 13 mayalternatively be any device or object that seeks to initiate acommunication on behalf of another entity or element, such as a program,a database, or any other component, device, element, or object capableof initiating a voice or a data exchange within communication system 10.Data, as used herein in this document, refers to any type of numeric,voice, video, audio-visual, or script data, or any type of source orobject code, or any other suitable information in any appropriate formatthat may be communicated from one point to another.

Base transceiver stations 16 are communicative interfaces that maycomprise radio transmission/reception devices, components, or objects,and antennas. Base transceiver stations 16 may be coupled to anycommunications device or element, such as mobile station 13 for example.Base transceiver stations 16 may also be coupled to base stationcontrollers 24 (via one or more intermediate elements) that use alandline (such as a T1/E1 line, for example) interface. Base transceiverstations 16 may operate as a series of complex radio modems whereappropriate. Base transceiver stations 16 may also perform transcodingand rate adaptation functions in accordance with particular needs.Transcoding and rate adaptation may also be executed in a GSMenvironment in suitable hardware or software (for example in atranscoding and rate adaptation unit (TRAU)) positioned between mobileswitching center 25 and base station controllers 24.

In operation, communication system 10 may include multiple cell sites 12that communicate with mobile stations 13 using base transceiver stations16 and cell site element 18. Central office site 14 may use aggregationnode 22 and base station controllers 24 for communicating with cell site12. One or more network management systems 20 may be coupled to eithercell site 12 and central office site 14 (or both as desired), wherebymobile switching center 25 provides an interface between base stationcontrollers 24 (of central office site 14) and PSTN 27, IP network 29,and/or any other suitable communication network. Base transceiverstations 16 may be coupled to cell site element 18 by a T1/E1 line orany other suitable communication link or element operable to facilitatedata exchanges. A backhaul connection between cell site element 18 andaggregation node 22 may also include a T1/E1 line or any suitablecommunication link where appropriate and in accordance with particularneeds.

Base station controllers 24 generally operate as management componentsfor a radio interface. This may be done through remote commands to acorresponding base transceiver station within a mobile network. One basestation controller 24 may manage more than one base transceiver stations16. Some of the responsibilities of base station controllers 24 mayinclude management of radio channels and assisting in handoff/handoverscenarios.

In operation, various traffic protocols (e.g. time division multiplexed(TDM), GSM 8.60 Frame Relay, high level data link control (HDLC),asynchronous transfer mode (ATM), point to point protocol (PPP) overHDLC, TRAU, vendor-specific formats, etc.) may be used and communicatedby each base transceiver station 16 to cell site element 18 of cell site12. Cell site element 18 may also receive IP or Ethernet traffic fromnetwork management system 20. Cell site element 18 may multiplextogether payloads from the layer-two based traffic that have a commondestination. The multiplexed payloads, as well as any payloads extractedfrom the network management system IP or Ethernet traffic may becommunicated across a link to aggregation node 22 within central officesite 14. Aggregation node 22 may demultiplex the payloads for deliveryto an appropriate base station controller 24 or network managementsystem 20.

Mobile switching center 25 operates as an interface between PSTN 27 andbase station controllers 24, and potentially between multiple othermobile switching centers in a network and base station controller 24.Mobile switching center 25 represents a location that generally housescommunication switches and computers and ensures that its cell sites ina given geographical area are properly connected. Cell sites refergenerally to the transmission and reception equipment or components thatconnect elements such as mobile station 13 to a network, such as IPnetwork 29 for example. By controlling transmission power and radiofrequencies, mobile switching center 25 may monitor the movement and thetransfer of a wireless communication from one cell to another cell andfrom one frequency or channel to another frequency or channel. In agiven communication environment, communication system 10 may includemultiple mobile switching centers 25 that are operable to facilitatecommunications between base station controller 24 and PSTN 27. Mobileswitching center 25 may also generally handle connection, tracking,status, billing information, and other user information forcommunications in a designated area.

PSTN 27 represents a worldwide telephone system that is operable toconduct communications. PSTN 27 may be any landline telephone networkoperable to facilitate communications between two entities, such as twopersons, a person and a computer, two computers, or in any otherenvironment in which data is exchanged for purposes of communication.According to one embodiment of the present invention, PSTN 27 operatesin a wireless domain, facilitating data exchanges between mobile station13 and any other suitable entity within or external to communicationsystem 10.

IP network 29 is a series of points or nodes of interconnectedcommunication paths for receiving and transmitting packets ofinformation that propagate through communication system 10. IP network29 offers a communications interface between mobile stations 13 and anyother suitable network equipment. IP network 29 may be any local areanetwork (LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), wide area network (WAN),wireless local area network (WLAN), virtual private network (VPN), orany other appropriate architectural system that facilitatescommunications in a network environment. IP network 29 implements atransmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP) communicationlanguage protocol in a particular embodiment of the present invention.However, IP network 29 may alternatively implement any other suitablecommunications protocol for transmitting and receiving data packetswithin communication system 10.

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of an example internal structure ofcell site element 18 and aggregation node 22, both of which include adynamic suppression element 60. In one embodiment, dynamic suppressionelement 60 is an algorithm (potentially included in appropriatesoftware) that achieves the suppressing operations as described herein.

The functional flow of communication system 10 may follow a bits in/bitsout protocol, being dependent only on the received bit pattern. InputDS0s may be demultiplexed to create an appropriate number of sub-rateDS0s, each corresponding to a different call. (Note that some DS0s arenot assigned to any call and still others are used for controlinformation.) For each sub-rate DS0, a certain portion (e.g. twomilliseconds) of samples may be collected synchronously. Because thecorresponding inputs are time-division multiplexed (TDM) streams, thecollection operation should be completed at roughly the same time. Forsixteen kilobits/sec multiplexing, this results in a collection of fourbytes of data from each stream at about the same time.

The collected samples may be compared to a few pre-identified (orpreviously learned) patterns (e.g. the previously occurring inputstreams) and decisions may be made regarding which bits are to besuppressed with a corresponding header representing that the data hasbeen suppressed. The receiving end may then perform reverse operationsin accounting for the suppression in order to restore the bit streamand, potentially, to then communicate it to its intended nextdestination. Thus, a demultiplexer/decompressor (not shown) may performtasks in reverse in order to undo what was done by the compressor andthe multiplexer, which can be included within aggregation node 22 and/orcell site element 18.

TDM streams may be TDM multiplexed to generate appropriate DS0s, whichare further combined with drop-and-insert DSs to create T1/E1s. Based onthe header of the overall multiplexed packet, appropriate lineconditions or alarms may be generated at the output T1/E1 interface.Note that in order to increase robustness in the presence of errors, itis possible to protect payload header bits by a forward error correctingcode and dropping the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) from point to pointprotocol (PPP) frames. An example of a simple error correcting methodcould be a table-based parity method, which can correct all one-biterrors.

It is critical to note that dynamic suppression element 60 may bechanged considerably, as it offers only one example suppression protocolconfiguration that accommodates any of the identified incoming bitpatterns. Any number of alternative bit patterns may be readilyaccommodated by communication system 10 and are, therefore, included inthe broad scope of its teachings. These common patterns may be based onparticular communication needs or on the prevalence of commonlyreoccurring bit patterns in a given communications architecture.Additionally, any attached header bits may also provide E1/T1 lineconditions and alarms. In other embodiments, additional bits may beadded to the header bits in order to provide any number of functions,such as control parameters, the state of the given communication link,the condition of the E1/T1 line, the condition of an alarm, or theidentification of a certain packet. Thus, these extra bits may provideany suitable additional information that may be relevant to acommunication session occurring in communication system 10.Additionally, dynamic suppression element 60 can be used to transportany TDM stream over IP. For example, some applications use TDMA and GSMon the same E1 (i.e. TDM on some timeslots, GSM on others). The presentinvention transports all such information over IP and restores the bitstream on the far end of TDM E1. For some TDMA applications, there isnot a lot of suppression occurring, but the system is still functional.

Before turning to FIG. 3, it is critical to note that the use of theterms ‘aggregation node’ and ‘cell site element’ herein in this documentonly connotes an example representation of one or more elementsassociated with base transceiver station 16 and base station controller24. These terms have been offered for purposes of example and teachingonly and do not necessarily imply any particular architecture orconfiguration. Moreover, the terms ‘cell site element’ and ‘aggregationnode’ are intended to encompass any network element that is operable tofacilitate a data exchange in a network environment. Accordingly, cellsite element 18 and aggregation node 22 may be routers, switches,bridges, gateways, interfaces, or any other suitable module, device,component, element or object operable to effectuate one or more of theoperations, tasks, or functionalities associated with compressing dataas implied, described, or offered herein.

As identified above, each of these elements may include software and/oran algorithm to effectuate suppression for voice or packet dataapplications as described herein. Alternatively, such suppressionoperations and techniques may be achieved by any suitable hardware,component, device, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC),additional software, field programmable gate array (FPGA), processor,algorithm, erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasableprogrammable ROM (EEPROM), or any other suitable object that is operableto facilitate such operations. Considerable flexibility is provided bythe structure of cell site element 18 and aggregation node 22 in thecontext of communication system 10. Thus, it can be easily appreciatedthat such a function could be provided external to cell site element 18and aggregation node 22. In such cases, such a functionality could bereadily embodied in a separate component, device, or module.

FIG. 3 is simplified block diagram of an example GSM 8.60 format E1structure. In operation of an example embodiment, consider a case wherean end user is having a conversation using a mobile station. Voiceframes from a given mobile station are generally being generated every20 milliseconds in such a scenario. In a typical environment, there are320-bit frames that are sent directly behind each other. In a nativeenvironment, base transceiver station 16 receives this information andconverts it into TRAU frames. There is control information that isexchanged (on another channel) between base transceiver station 16 andbase station controller 24 (over an E1 link 40) that indicates whichchannel or which sub-rate that will be assigned for this call.

When a call comes up, these frames (which are primarily of a fixedlength) are put into T1/E1 sub-rates, whereby a DS0 is eight bits. Theseeight bits can be further divided into sub-rates (an 8 kilobit sub-ratecorresponds to a single bit, a 16 kilobit sub-rate corresponds to twobits, a 32 kilobit sub-rate corresponds to four bits, and a 64 kilobitsub-rate corresponds to the full DS0).

In a simple case, a call is on a 16 kilobit sub-rate channel and it willbe assigned to a time slot (and assigned one sub-rate inside that timeslot) for transmission over the E1. Every 125 microseconds, two bits ofthe frame are being sent across the E1. Base station controller 24receives this information, assembles the frames, and then presents themto the TRAU.

In accordance with the operation of the present invention, the framingprotocol that is used (e.g. 16 kilobit TRAU frames, half-rate calls,etc.) is ignored. The algorithm of the present invention willuniversally divide the channel into 8-kilobit sub-rates. In this manner,synchronization is not being attempted; only the raw bits are beingevaluated. The algorithm can begin to collect bits on an 8-kilobitsub-rate basis. For example, if a full E1 is present, then 31 time slots(each time slot having 8 sub-rates) are present that could have data.Hence, a total of 248 eight-kilobit sub-rates could be active.

In this example embodiment, an FPGA could be employed to monitor theline and to separate the bits into 248 sub-rates. The FPGA can alsocollect a sample that contains 16 bits for each sub-rate (every twomilliseconds). The FPGA can also perform demultiplexing operations.After the two-millisecond interval elapses, the FPGA then has 16 bitscollected for each sub-rate. The FPGA can then send an interrupt signalto IOS with this new packet (i.e. the super-frame) that has informationfor each of the sub-rates. From IOS, there will be 3968 bits (plusheader bits), which consists of 248 samples of 16 bits each.

Over a period of ten samples, that data would add up to approximately aframes worth of data. Recall that the frames are of a fixed length (e.g.160 bits). The algorithm can now take these and forward them to theother end (i.e. the base station controller) such that they can bedemultiplexed and regenerated. Coupled to this super-frame is a header,which can be a bit-mask (where there is one bit for each possible 16-bitsample). It should be noted that the bit mask is not always necessary(i.e. not included in the backhaul frame header). In order to compressthe data, the IOS records and saves ten samples (in a row) and thencompares the sample that is currently being evaluated with a sample thatoccurred ten samples ago. Stated differently, the algorithm compares thesample that it received for that sub-rate to the same sample that itreceived ten instances ago. Thus, the algorithm compares new bits tosimilar bits that would have been provided in the same bit position in aprevious frame. The present invention capitalizes on the intrinsicnature of the data and the inherent characteristics of the fixed lengthrestrictions.

The suppression changes dynamically based on the data that is beingcommunicated. In addition, protocols such as HDLC can be significantlyoptimized such that flags will synchronize or line-up such that they arecompressed out. Similarly, idle frames (or idle periods between frames)or silence will readily be compressed.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of an example that illustrates someof the concepts that have been discussed above. It should be emphasizedthat such an illustration is only a logical view of the presentinvention. Specifically, a single TRAU frame is generally not sent inthe same IP backhaul packet, as FIG. 4 suggests. FIG. 4 has only beenoffered for purposes of teaching and discussion. Indicated generally at62 are two TRAU frames being received by a router 70 (or a switch, agateway, etc.), which is located on the base station controller side ofthe network. These represent the standard 320-bit frames that are cominginto the system. Within the frames are the samples that were describedpreviously. The first of these TRAU frames that is being received byrouter 70 is indicative of the whole sample, which should be sentunchanged (as it is the first sample).

This first sample is stored by router 70 and then the second of theseTRAU frames is received by router 70. Now two samples can be compared(i.e. samples from one frame can be compared to samples from a previousframe). In this example, samples 2-9 are the same and, hence, do nothave to be transmitted on the backhaul. An IP over long-haul element 80is provided that illustrates how the data is actually transmitted acrossthe backhaul. As identified earlier, the first TRAU frame is stilltransmitted over the backhaul. However, the second TRAU frame is handleddifferently, as the algorithm of the present invention can readilyidentify this opportunity for suppression/compression. In the secondpacket that is being sent samples 2-9 are not included. Only samples 1and 10 are being sent in the second packet because only those samplesare different between the two packets.

Hence, when samples between two frames are different, then the samplesare included in the packet and sent across the backhaul. When samplesare the same, then there is no need to send them over the backhaul. Therepeating samples only need to be played back and not transmitted overthe backhaul. Stated in anther way, only the “deltas” are transmittedover the backhaul. The delta reflects the difference in a comparison ofthe bits that would be in the same position of the previous frame.

It should be noted that some of the steps discussed in the precedingFIGURES may be changed or deleted where appropriate and additional stepsmay also be added to the process flows. These changes may be based onspecific communication system architectures or particular networkingarrangements or configurations and do not depart from the scope or theteachings of the present invention.

Although the present invention has been described in detail withreference to particular embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 4, itshould be understood that various other changes, substitutions, andalterations may be made hereto without departing from the spirit andscope of the present invention. For example, although the presentinvention has been described with reference to a number of elementsincluded within communication system 10, these elements may berearranged or positioned in order to accommodate any suitable routing,compression, and suppression techniques. In addition, any of thedescribed elements may be provided as separate external components tocommunication system 10 or to each other where appropriate. The presentinvention contemplates great flexibility in the arrangement of theseelements as well as their internal components.

In addition, although the preceding description offers a suppressionprotocol to be implemented with particular devices (e.g. aggregationnode 22 and cell site element 18), the compression/suppression protocolprovided may be embodied in a fabricated module that is designedspecifically for effectuating the techniques discussed above. Moreover,such a module may be compatible with any appropriate protocol, otherthan those discussed herein, which were offered for purposes of teachingand example only.

Numerous other changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, andmodifications may be ascertained to one skilled in the art and it isintended that the present invention encompass all such changes,substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications as fallingwithin the scope of the appended claims.

1. An apparatus for communicating data, comprising: a cell site elementassociated with a base transceiver station and operable to receive aplurality of bits associated with a communications flow, wherein thecell site element is further operable to determine whether one or moresamples included in the flow should be suppressed, and wherein the cellsite element is further operable to suppress a selected one or more ofthe samples if the selected samples are similar to previously receivedsamples.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cell site element isfurther operable to position unique samples that are included in theflow in a super-frame to be communicated to a next destination.
 3. Theapparatus of claim 2, wherein the unique samples may be received andevaluated in order to restore a plurality of bits associated with thecommunications flow.
 4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the selectedsamples reflect patterns that correspond to one or more data segmentsthat are common to an associated network.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4,wherein the data segments correspond to silence data, idle data, controldata, repetitive voice data, or user data.
 6. The apparatus of claim 2,wherein the cell site element is operable to ignore a framing protocolassociated with the flow.
 7. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein thesuper-frame is demultiplexed at the next destination.
 8. The apparatusof claim 2, wherein the cell site element is operable to evaluate bitpositions of a current sample of a current frame and to compare thosewith bit positions of a previous sample in order to determine whether toperform a suppression operation associated with the flow.
 9. Theapparatus of claim 2, wherein the cell site element includes a dynamicsuppression element that is operable to perform the suppression andpositioning operations.
 10. The apparatus of claim 2, furthercomprising: an aggregation node associated with a base stationcontroller and operable to communicate with the cell site element and toreceive the super-frame.
 11. A method for communicating data,comprising: receiving a plurality of bits associated with acommunications flow; determining whether one or more samples included inthe flow should be suppressed; and suppressing a selected one or more ofthe samples if the selected samples are similar to previously receivedsamples.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising: positioningunique samples that are included in the flow in a super-frame to becommunicated to a next destination.
 13. The method of claim 12, furthercomprising: receiving the unique samples; and evaluating the uniquesamples in order to restore a plurality of bits associated with thecommunications flow.
 14. The method of claim 12, wherein the selectedsamples reflect patterns that correspond to one or more data segmentsthat are common to an associated network.
 15. The method of claim 14,wherein the data segments correspond to silence data, idle data, orcontrol data, repetitive voice data, or user data.
 16. The method ofclaim 12, further comprising: ignoring a framing protocol associatedwith the flow.
 17. The method of claim 12, wherein the super-frame isdemultiplexed at the next destination.
 18. The method of claim 12,further comprising: evaluating bit positions of a current sample of acurrent frame and comparing those with bit positions of a previoussample in order to determine whether to perform a suppression operationassociated with the flow.
 19. Software for communicating data, thesoftware being embodied in a computer readable medium and comprisingcomputer code such that when executed is operable to: receive aplurality of bits associated with a communications flow; determinewhether one or more samples included in the flow should be suppressed;and suppress a selected one or more of the samples if the selectedsamples are similar to previously received samples.
 20. The medium ofclaim 19, wherein the code is further operable to: position uniquesamples that are included in the flow in a super-frame to becommunicated to a next destination.
 21. The medium of claim 20, whereinthe code is further operable to: receive the unique samples; andevaluate the unique samples in order to restore a plurality of bitsassociated with the communications flow.
 22. The medium of claim 20,wherein the code is further operable to: ignore a framing protocolassociated with the flow.
 23. The medium of claim 20, wherein thesuper-frame is demultiplexed at the next destination.
 24. The medium ofclaim 20, wherein the code is further operable to: evaluate bitpositions of a current sample of a current frame and compare those withbit positions of a previous sample in order to determine whether toperform a suppression operation associated with the flow.